Escape
by Silent Sorrow
Summary: Kadaj is stuck in a Shinra ward and they are trying to use his DNA to remake Sepiroth and find a way to inject normal people with Jenova cells to make better, more obedient SOLDIERS. What will he do?
1. Number 547

Hello everyone! This is my first fic that has ANYTHING to do with FF7. I haven't played much of the game, so I'm sorry if the fic doesn't correspond EXACTLY with all the details of the game. This fic is set after Advent Children, in a sort of alternate universe. Kind of. O.o;. Anyways, enjoy the fic. .

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Chapter One

The front of the ward looked like any normal house. Built into the side of the mountains, only the front two floors were visible at the front. They had windows like any other house. Those beautiful, round windows that were painted white and where split into several sections dotted the front rooms, letting in much needed sunlight into the check-in counter and break room and other staff-only sections of the ward. A tall, white fence made of iron enclosed the front yard, which was decorated sparsely with a middle fountain and large hedges and flower beds. There wasn't a small cement ring for cars to pull up to the ward; after all, the patients that were checked into the ward usually didn't ever come out, and Shinra only needed to drop them off at the front gate, which was usually locked. The rest of the ward was located in the mountain itself and was filled with padded rooms, interrogation rooms, a mess hall of sorts, and a few entertainment areas. The ward had a basement, but only a select handful of staff members were allowed to go down there. What other secret Shinra could possibly be hiding down there, one could only speculate.

In the North West wing of the ward, where only the craziest of crazies were kept, a man stirred in a heavily padded room that only had a small futon to sleep on. He didn't even have a sheet, for Shinra feared that he might someone manage to strangle himself between the guard's ten minute shifts. A straight jacket kept him properly restrained, and he rocked back in forth in the farthest corner from the guards. He hated their dark eyes. Everything about them reminded him of a woman he saw in his dreams. They were dreams now, weren't they? The smell of the thick, white padding reminded him, too, of something in his dreams. But of what, he wasn't even sure. For all he had known, he was dead. He had seen that white light reaching out for him and saw familiar people extending their hands and calling for him and yet . . . he was still in this room. How many days had passed since then? With all his blackouts and fits, he couldn't keep track of time anymore. His last calculations pointed at a week, but then the madness set in and he couldn't think anymore. That and there was no light in the North West wing. He was above the floors that were lit and kept where, if he escaped, he could easily be captured again.

_You're mad! Absolutely insane! We're going to have to administer ESTs on you. It'll hurt at first, but it's okay. It'll all be okay . . . eventually you'll be well enough to walk in the sun again, and hey! You might even get to go home, get a job, and make a proper living. _They said to him. They injected him with this strange, green liquid before hooking up needles and probes to his body while he underwent strange epileptic fits and saw these strange hallucinations. He saw a beautiful woman standing tall in front of him, calling for him to release her and her son so that they could purify this world and the many others that they had yet to visit. He saw a man, her son . . . he was so familiar . . . and that man whispered to him frightening things about the people who were his caretakers. He spoke of all these things, of a company called Shinra. When he was trying to sleep, even, he heard this man's voice talking to him, rambling on. Did the man even know what he was saying or to whom it was being said? Maybe not. Maybe it was just all in his head and there wasn't anyone talking to him. Maybe it was the other prisoners. But what if it wasn't?

"Ahh!" the man cried out, jerking onto his side. The straight jacket cut at his arms as he tried to pull them free and he rolled around on the ground, spasming furiously. "Let me out! Not insane . . . not insane . . . may . . . makkk . . . mayyyyk . . . mm . . makkkk . . . makooo!"

Pain, which he was so accustomed to these days, coursed through his head and burned his eyes. The single light that was embedded in the padding in the ceiling and covered by a grate flickered and burned out. One by one, the rest of the lights fell into darkness, and silence settled around him. And then, the sound of squeaky wheels. Those wretchedly squeaky wheels that were never greased only meant one thing. He twitched around on the padded floor, slamming his head into the padding as they rolled the gurney down the white tiled hall. He knew what was happening, and he struggled furiously to get out of his bonds.

"No! Can't have me! Never! Never let you . . . let the … the? Shin . . . shin shin shinny! Shin raaaa . . . rashhi . . . shinra!" He screamed, breaking the silence. He saw the men clothed in white suits and face masks as they sauntered up to the glass wall and typed in the needed code to open his cell. It seemed that they were afraid they would contract his insanity by mere touch alone. Oh, but it was so much more. The man sneered at them and bared his teeth, "Be afraid! Very afraid of me! Yes! Fe fe . . . feee . . . fear me!" He fell into hysterical laughter as they lifted him off the floor of his cell and onto the gurney. With thick, leather straps they restrained him and slowly rolled him out of the North West wing. The other inmates watched him go with fearful eyes, as even they, who were among insane serial killers, rapists, and other nutcases refused to have anything to do with him. A part of him reveled in their fear, but another part just felt empty. Why did he always have to feel so empty?

The moment they left his wing, the lights flickered back on and the hallway they entered was submerged in darkness. It was the same routine every week: They would shut out the lights as they carted him to the head of his ward for examination, which always ended up in more treatments before he was sent back to his ward, crazier then ever. The reason for shutting off the lights was simple: his mere presence discomforted the other patients. They couldn't stand to look in his eyes, for some reason. He really wished he could look into a mirror and see what they saw. He wanted to know if maybe he was physically disfigured or if perhaps…

He cried out in pain as heat shot through his head, searing his thoughts into submission. A strange voice, the one he kept hearing when he was trying to sleep, whispered, _They fear you because they know you. They know us! We are the two surviving children of Mother. You and I. And Shinra . . . _the voice trailed off, silenced with thought. When it said nothing further, the man cried, "What? What about Shinra? Tell me!" He dug his nails into his palms, but the voice spoke no further. It was silenced completely as the man was carted into one of the examination rooms. It was filled with sterile equipment, needles, several books pertaining to strange subjects that he felt he knew something about. It was white though. He had come to hate white, as it entrapped him. It was suffocating him day by day and he couldn't die. Once, he attempted to starve himself, but the Doctor overseeing his section of the ward had him tranquilized and intravenously fed until he was well again. Why couldn't they just let him die? He wanted to die! He wanted to be able to live without feeling pain and without being consumed with incoherent thoughts! The voice spoke again, darker and more sinister, _Shinra won't let you die, Kadaj. Because you are the only survivor of Jenova's bloodline . . .the only being they have in their hands that hasn't rejected her cells after all the Mako treatments they've given you. ESTs? Hardly._

"Who . . . stop talking . . . mako mako mako . . ." he sputtered. The two men dressed in white uniforms glanced to each other and then to the doctor sitting at her desk. The doctor tilted her head towards Kadaj, who was struggling against them again, and removed her wired spectacles. For a few moments, the blue eyed doctor studied Kadaj, before nodding to the two uniformed men. They both glanced at each other before slowly removing the straight jacket from around Kadaj and stepping out of the room.

He sat on a nearby stool, shakily at first. His hands were trembling terribly, so he folding them in his lap as the doctor, in her pristine white lab-coat, scooted over to him on her rolling desk chair. In her hands she held a plain, manila folder that was thick with graph papers and other documents pertaining to him. He eyed them wearily, and contemplated snatching them from her. After all, why shouldn't he be allowed to see them. His fingers twitched in anticipation, but a moment before he struck out, he heard the voice again. _Don't be a fool, Kadaj . . . don't you want out of that white room? Don't you want to see the sun again? Patience . . . patience…_

Kadaj straightened and focused on the doctor. She stared at him with her big, blue eyes that seemed ever so innocent. Shinra . . . Shinra . . . the man said that they were corrupt and not to be trusted. Could he trust that voice? It was probably just his own self speaking to him. But that didn't sound like his voice . . . no, it wasn't him. It was someone else. But why was someone else in his head? The man tried to keep himself from freaking out, but he was so close to loosing his nerves. Then the doctor smiled at him and laid the folder back on her desk.

"You seem a lot better today, Number 547," she said, smiling. That's all he was anymore. A number. He hated it when she said that, but he kept calm. He wanted to see the sun again. He was tired of that annoying light in his cell that flickered and buzzed and hummed while he was trying to sleep. After all, he couldn't sleep anyways, but that just added to his annoyance.

"I, uh, I feel better … the treatments . . . mako …" He accidentally sputtered. _Damnit, why'd I say that! Why shouldn't I? Mako mako mako? The hell is going on with me? I need to pull it together!_

"Yes, about this 'mako' . . . what do you mean?" She inquired, leaning forward. He caught sight of her cleavage underneath the lab-coat and white vest she wore. Suddenly, he felt very weak and out of control. He wanted to do something . . . he wanted to get up and run around and be alive. But he was so empty. Kadaj started trembling.

"I . . . don't know. Just . . . something in my dreams. Something someone keeps saying to me . . . mako mako mako . . . it's … I don't . . . ESTs . . ." Kadaj stuttered. He started fidgeting with the buttons of his medical gown and touching his hair and scooting his feet on the cold floor. It was so cold, like ice. "I'm . . . tired . . . I want air, fresh air . . . sunlight … mako mako . . . I want mako . . . Nibelheim . . ." he cried, clutching his head in pain. Heat was building in the back of his head, searing his vision again, and he heard the voices of hundreds of people speaking to him, urging him to do various things. But he kept what the man had said in mind. _See the sun . . . the sunlight._

The doctor raised her eyebrows and put her spectacles back on. She flipped through the folder of documents and began jotting down a few notes, adding onto the mess of thoughts and notes made by other doctors that had examined Kadaj over the weeks he had been entrusted to the ward's care. He was a very vital experiment to them, and they believed that they could use his DNA to recreate Sephiroth. After all, any experiments created from Jenova's DNA had failed miserably and had to be destroyed. But Kadaj . . . he was a part of Jenova and had been created in a very similar manner as Sephiroth had. This time, however, Shinra was determined to control their SOLDIERs in a way that would allow them to harness power over the entire planet. First was first, however. They had to run various tests and experiments on him to see if his DNA was even capable of recreating the monster that Dr. Hojo had first produced.

Kadaj, in his ramblings, proved that there was something of Sephiroth in him: A flicker of a memory or perhaps the genetic material to recreate him. Either way, the doctor who was sitting across from him at that very moment was writing out a form to reduce the Mako treatments and move Kadaj to better rooms. If Shinra could make themselves out to be the good guy, then maybe they could persuade Kadaj back to their side, or, if that failed, they could simple try out their new mind control chips on him. Either way would work just fine so long as they could bend their creations to their will. If Kadaj was as useful as they thought he might be, they could create an army of Sephiroth clones to overrun the rebels and create a perfect race obedient to Shinra. It was a far fetched dream, but anything that meant more power for Shinra was something worth working towards. They even dreamed of recreating the ancients from their studies of the lifestream and what they knew of Jenova.

Glancing nervously at the doctor, he wondered if what he had rambled about was a good thing or a bad thing. Usually the doctor, whichever one happened to be with him at the moment, sent him away with a prescription of more treatments and less privileges. Why couldn't he read books like other patients? Or watch the television or walk outside once a month. He was a person too! He wanted to be able to breathe the fresh air and look at the sky and the trees and see . . . see all there was to see. Kadaj could hardly remember anything before he was entered into the ward. It was all blurred. Sometimes he remembered a blonde haired man and a sword . . . this large sword that was always cutting him through.

"You'll get to see your sunlight and have your fresh air," Dr. Mizu said as she finished filling out the form. She looked up to see Kadaj entirely relieved. He was afraid that he'd have to go back into the cell at the end of his wing, trapped in a straight jacket and forced to listen to the incessant flickering of that light. He didn't like hearing the other prisoners. They boasted of their nasty deeds, which always disturbed Kadaj. Though he may have been a bit off his rocker, he wasn't anything like them. He knew it. They knew it. Sometimes he suspected that they wanted to kill him. Maybe he was just being paranoid. Either way, he would be happy to know that he didn't have to ever see them again.

_Don't get too comfortable with them, Kadaj . . . remember what they did to you. All the pain they've caused you. And know that they will try to use you for something. They are _always _up to something. Always. _The voice reminded him gently, soothing his fried nerves over. That voice felt like velvet rubbing against his mind. It was soft and persuasive, but it pacified him too. When he heard that voice, he didn't feel so alone anymore, even if that voice was just a figment of his warped imagination. _We're going to see the sun again . . ._ he thought to himself. Really, that's all that mattered to simple-minded Kadaj. Anything to get out of this clean, white ward that was really a prison. He remembered being carted in through the front doors and seeing how even most of the windows had bars over them or were reinforced plastic with small holes.

"No straight jacket . . . no more buzzing lights . . . murder murder? Murderers . . ." he rambled on, his thoughts splitting into a spider web of processes.

Smiling, she walked over to him and said, "No more restraints as long as you're good and take your monthly treatments without a fuss." She patted him on the head and called the guards in. The two men looked Kadaj over and opened the straight jacket. Immediately, he tensed, and his eyes shot over to the blue eyed doctor. She shook her head.

"No more jackets. I want him in the third cell in the South West Wing with library and courtyard privileges," she said, looking at them over the rim of her glasses. She handed them a signed form with all of her recommendations for the treatments. The two men glanced at each other and inquired, "Do you really think it's safe to do that? He really is crazy, you know!"

Her eyes flared with annoyance, "Why are you questioning me? It says on the form that if he displays any aggressive behavior to tranquilize him. And if he repeats his bad behavior, he'll go back to his old cell." She glanced over to Kadaj, who was curling his silver hair around his fingers. "And I don't think that he wants that. So he'll be good, right?" She inquired, treating him as though he were a child. But Kadaj simply nodded, grateful that he'd be able to access reading material in order to distract his crazy mind. The doctor smiled and shooed them all out of her office.

When they were gone, she collapsed in her swiveling chair and looked over all the documents concerning Kadaj. For a greater part of the year, they had been injecting him with mako treatments, but to no avail. He seemed to just get crazier and crazier as the weeks passed, but now . . . now he had mentioned something that only Sephiroth would remember. Nibelheim . . . that was the keyword. Also, he rambled about mako. He wouldn't have possibly been able to know that they were actually injecting him with that and not just regular fluids unless he had something of the former SOLDIER in him. The doctor smiled to herself, flipping through the paperwork. True, Kadaj had a very violent side, but they had only seen that once when he broke out of the guard's hold and, taking the gun out of his holster, shot him dead between the eyes and tried to run, very naked like, down the hall. He didn't get very far, and she doubted that he remembered even doing it. It had frightened her though, because his eyes hadn't been gray like they usually were. They were deep green. Very much like Sephiroth's eyes. She was convinced that Kadaj held the key to not only recreating Sephiroth, but making normal people into SOLDIERS.

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There you have it! 3. Please review and maybe I'll write another chapter. >3 


	2. Late Night Findings

Woot, chapter two! I'm excited. nodnod. I'd like to reiterate one thing: This story takes place in an sort of alternate universe, because anyone who saw Advent Children knows what happened to Kadaj at the end. But here he is. I know it's not exactly how things are supposed to be, but I'm trying to be creative, mkay? I have explanations for everything, if not now, then in later chapters. Please R&R. .

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Chapter Two

The courtyard was beautiful. It was within the mountain, but Shinra had drilled a large hole through all the rock and dirt to let in the sunlight and fresh air. Large patches of roses were being cultivated in uplifted circles of marble and large fountains, in the shape of enticing sirens, dotted the grassy opening. There was a path, made of marble bricks, that wound through the courtyard. It cut through the grass, around the circles of roses, and past the fountains with water cascading past the soft, white lips of the sirens. It started and ended at the door leading to the ward, where two, tall guards stood, hands loosely holding their rifles. A butterfly or two fluttered across the yard, visiting roses and even the few tulips that were being grown to gather its much needed nectar. They had beautiful red wings, as thin and delicate as silk, with specks of black dotting their gossamer surface. Their long, graceful antennas flickered from side to side as they soared from one open blossom to another. Sometimes a small hummingbird dove down the long tunnel that cut through the mountain to reach the luscious, sweet nectar that the flowers harbored. But those were very rare.

Kadaj lifted his eyes from the book he was reading and watched the butterfly as it journeyed across the open courtyard. His brow furrowed and he returned to his reading. Ironic enough, it was a romance. Although he wasn't much for romances, he had practically exhausted his selection of reading material. Shinra was extremely particular about what he had access to. Anything that was overly violent, aggressive, or imparted any sort of battle knowledge were strictly forbidden. He was able to access some romances, satires, poetry, and a bit of basic history about Shinra or the planet itself. It was a very queer sort of thing, but Kadaj didn't object. He was simply very glad to be able to access anything to read at all. Oh, and he was glad to be in the courtyard. He glanced up and watched a stray cloud float over the opening in the mountain. It was then that a curious idea came to him.

Dismissing it, he returned to his reading. It distracted his mind so that he didn't have time to think about the dreams that were gradually fading from him. Maybe it was just him being insane and now that they were cutting down on his treatments and he wasn't so violent and . . . but he stopped at that thought. The treatments were supposed to make him better. Make him . . . do something. He didn't know what those mako treatments were supposed to make him do. The doctor said that they were supposed to keep him calm and make him feel better and all these other complicated things. But that voice, that persuasive, silky voice kept telling him otherwise. Sometimes, he didn't know who to believe. It was all so very difficult to comprehend. But the voice inside him knew what it was talking about, though, right? I mean, it had to know what was going on, because, obviously, he didn't understand a thing. He wasn't even sure why he was insane in the first place, or even why they were treating him or what they were treating him for. His 'alter ego' had to know. It had to. But ever since the treatments had been cut down, it remained dormant. And Kadaj felt empty again. Deserted, almost.

His eyes flickered over a love scene between two characters in the book before snapping it shut. He already knew how it was going to end. Eventually, the woman's cruel husband would find out about her affair and the lover would either be chased off or killed and it would have a rather tragic ending. Kadaj scoffed. Each and every trashy romance was just like every other of its kind. Folding his arms across his chest, Kadaj leaned back in the chair that was positioned right in the sunlight and he watched the clouds float over the mountain opening. The edges of the opening were jagged from the drill, as the opening was so high up that no one could simply climb up the edges. Kadaj glanced over to the door leading to the ward, and the two guards were still there. If he wanted to escape, he'd have to make a break for it between their shifts. But he had never seen them switch shifts while he was there. Maybe it was because they were still weary of what he was hiding. What was he hiding anyways? He let out an exasperated huff and leaned back in the chair. He just wanted to get out of here and back into the real world. What was the real world even like? His brow furrowed in frustration. There were so many questions that were left unanswered and so many things that he longed to know but may never know. He wanted to talk to his doctor about getting out of the ward. Better yet, why even talk to her? Even without the voice coaxing him to not to throw temper tantrums and to not bother asking questions that would have lies as answers, he knew that she was lying to him and concealing things from him. Well, that just meant that he would have to find some things out for himself. That large manila folder must contain something of value. If only he could get his hands on it…

As he contemplated the complexity of getting out of his cell, strolling past a plethora of patrolling guards, and then stealing the manila folder to flip through at his leisure, a pair of guards strolled up to him. Their grip on their rifles tightened a bit, as though they still expected trouble from him. Hadn't he been docile long enough for them to be persuaded that he was no longer at threat? Seriously, it was really starting to get on his nerves how everyone was so tense around him. He frowned a bit. Kadaj was really starting to hate being here. First it was a straight jacket, padded cell, ESTs . . . mako treatments. Nibelheim. The mansion . . . Jenova . . . mako mako mako. All the mako, the beautiful sea green life stream . . . mako, the treatments . . . Jenova. Mako mako mako . . . silver . . . the children . . . the Geostigma. Sephiroth . . .

One of the guards hit him in his face with the butt of his rifle, "Didn't you hear me, you piece of shit? I said it's time to go."

Kadaj snapped up, blood trickling down the side of his face, and glared at the guard, his eyes flaring green, "What'd you say?" He suddenly rose and turned to face the guard. His silver hair fluttered in the breeze and sticking to the patch of blood on his cheek as they engaged in a stare down. An uncontrollable rage was coursing through his blood. Something was happening to him. He wanted to back down, but he couldn't. A part of him wouldn't let him walk away from what had just happened. The guards, they grinned at him maliciously, knowing that they were provoking him into attacking them. He clenched his fists and mumbled, "One, two, three, four, five, one, two, three . . ." It was just darkness then.

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"Let me out of here!" He cried, throwing himself against the padded walls. "Fucking pieces of . . . arrrgh!" Kadaj slammed his head against the wall over and over and over again until he had a headache. Burning hot tears of rage and frustration streamed down his pale face and he just leaned his head against the soft wall. "Didn't do anything . . . it was just dark . . . so dark . . . and cold . . . cold like . . . like . . . ice... yea, ice… like his stare . . . Jenova! Jenooova!" he screeched, his fingernails clawing furiously at the clothing binding his wrists together. "Mother, mother . . . please . . . free me . . . mother . . ."

He laid on his back and stared at the flickering light. It hummed incessantly throughout the rest of the day, and was finally killed by the time lights-out time came at eight in the evening. It was just him and the cold darkness then. The rest of the prisoners had given up trying to tell him to shut up and went to bed. Kadaj just laid in his corner, frightened and unsure of what was happening. They called him crazy, everyone did, but he didn't think so. It had to be a lie. It had to be another lie, a deception, like his short lived freedom with his books and romances and his second visit to the courtyard. What did they want from him? What more could they take besides his freedom, his life? They had stolen everything from him, even his memory and identity. Was he really this Kadaj? The doctor gave him a number, Number 547. But that voice in his head, the one that had stopped talking to him ever since the mako treatments were reduced, called him Kadaj. He called himself Kadaj too, now, because of that voice. Was that his real name or just . . .?

The section of the mountain that was cut away . . . that had to be his way of escape. The front was too populated with staff and armed guards. He wouldn't make it over the iron fence or through . . . through . . . what the hell was out there anyways? For all he knew, it could be a large city belonging to Shinra or worse . . . a desert. He could escape and there wouldn't be anywhere to run to. Not like he had anywhere to go anyways. For all he knew, he had no family, no home, nothing. Not even friends.

_God damnit! _He thought, banging his head against the floor. _If only there was a way . . . a way to at least see what is out there without actually going there._ Over and over, he slammed his head against the floor, trying to devise a way of escape. The manila folder meant nothing to him now. It didn't matter whether or not he was an experiment, a mutation, or a person. He just wanted to be in the outside world where there weren't straight jackets, padded rooms, annoying freaking lights that flickered on and off all day, or doctors that lied about EST treatments. But Shinra had him, and there wasn't any feasible way of escaping. Kadaj let out a heavy, reluctant sigh and, rolling onto his stomach, tucked himself into the corner of his cell. Maybe he would get some sleep tonight. Maybe those dreams wouldn't come to haunt him. Maybe . . . just maybe.

The plastic cell door wasn't an obstacle. He just passed through it like a ghost and sauntered down the hallway, eyeing the other prisoners. Those few that were still awake didn't seem to see him; either that or they were too enraptured with what they were doing to notice. So, unnoticed, he walked down the dark hallway and passed through the door at the end of his wing. The guards sitting in their security boxes right outside the wing didn't take notice either. They were watching some silly kid's show that only came on late at night because of how ancient it was. Kadaj flicked his eyes, nonchalantly, over them. One even looked right at him, but turned his head back to the television. It was undoubtedly strange, but it didn't matter to him. Now was the opportunity to get that folder and to see what was outside.

He tip toed down the hallway, wound his way through the maze of corridors and rooms until he ended up where he wanted. Dr. Mizu's office. The light was off, as she probably headed off to bed a few hours ago. It had to be midnight. Most of the lights were off, even the basic night lights that were kept on a few hours after the wing lights were extinguished. Kadaj didn't even bother with the door handle; he just passed through the door itself. It was, after all, much easier then fussing with a lock.

There was a filing cabinet right next to her messy desk. Kadaj kneeled in front of it and, opening the bottom draw where the 500s were kept, he flipped through the large selection of folders until he found his: Number 547. It was a lot thicker then the others. It had to have a few years worth of complied notes and treatment recommendations, but that wasn't the case. In fact, he hadn't even been in the hospital for six months and yet his folder was crammed with notes on his condition. Kadaj glanced over to the doctor's chair, pulled it out, and collapsed in it. Laying the folder out on the desk, he started with day one. The very first day that he was brought into the hospital. According to the notes, they had found him, barely alive, in Midgar. After vigorous mako treatments, he started to recover but with, apparently, no memories of who he had been before hand. The trauma from his injuries and all the mako treatments could have caused him to lock away his memories.

His brow furrowed as he scanned the scribbles that dotted the paper. Apparently, these notes weren't just from his stay in the hospital. They contained vital information about his birth, his former alliance with Shinra, and how he betrayed them to release Sephiroth and Jenova on the world to destroy it. Flickers of memories came back to him. The stealing of the Jenova cells, his becoming of Sephiroth, and his clashing with Cloud after he killed Sephiroth and almost killed himself. Later notes explained some of what Shinra was attempting to do during his supposed EST treatments. They were drawing blood and creating clones of Sephiroth, but although those clones looked exactly like Sephiroth, they were dead. They had no soul, no life, and were utterly useless. The mako treatments were supposed to bring out Sephiroth's personality in him, or transform him into the famous SOLDIER like before. Maybe that's why the guards feared him. During his mako treatments, he could unpredictably change into the most feared SOLDIER of all, or was that for other reasons? Kadaj snickered and flipped through the loose pieces of paper. What else Shinra was planning, the notes didn't say. The doctor was simply required to keep an eye out for any behavior that might hint at his knowing of Sephiroth of bringing out the Sephiroth in him. It was all rather amusing to think that they were trying to make him transform back into the silver haired devil that would kill them all if resurrected. It brought about another question. Why had he transformed then but could not now? It baffled him.

Skimming through the rest of the notes, he felt slightly relieved. And slightly annoyed. He was just their little experiment until they could find a way to revive the real Sephiroth. Then what would they do with the world? Bend them all to their control? He was they key to their devious little plot, and if he could just escape then . . . he tried to put that out of his mind. There was no way to escape. There couldn't be. If there was a way, then certainly there would have been others before him that attempted it. He'd never heard a whisper of anyone ever trying. Probably because the guards had once made it very clear to him that any escape attempts ended in death. _But they need me_, he thought to himself as he tucked the folder back where it came from. _Shinra won't kill me until they have what they want. And that is a solid, living, breathing Sephiroth… Can I give them that? What if their attempts prove futile and there is no more use for me? What then?_ The silver haired man wondered as his blue green eyes with specks of gold splashed across their depths flickered across the room. He would find a way, even if it meant death. Either way, whether he tried to run or stayed, death was inevitable. It was just a matter of how he met it.

Slamming the cabinet of folders shut, Kadaj strode slowly out of the office and down the dark hall. Just about everyone was asleep except for the guards sitting in the rooms in front of the wings themselves. Instead of returning right to his wing, Kadaj meandered down a flight of stairs, through a couple of hallways, and past the iron door that kept the courtyard safe at night from intruders or would-be escapees. It was simply gorgeous at night, bathed in the moon's pale light. A few fireflies fluttered around the closed roses and around the marble fountains. The marble path led him straight to the opening in the mountain, and he gazed up at the star specked sky. How easy it would be for him to just fly away. For him to rise slowly off the ground, spiral upwards towards the deep blue ocean in the sky above, and see around him the mountain ridges that were covered in thick forest. That forest extended for miles, it seemed, but that was a river that wound its way down the mountains and into the valley between them. Where it led from there, he didn't know. Kadaj started out towards the mountains, to feel the wind beneath his feet and in his air, but a sudden force jerked him back.

"No!" he cried, reaching out in front of him as he was rapidly pulled out of the sky and back through the hole in the mountain. "I want to go free, forever! Let me go to mother, let me go free!" he shrieked.

* * *

Kadaj jerked forward and rolled onto his stomach. It was daylight now, and the flickering light in his cell was buzzing away as usual. The events of the night before seemed so real, but they might have just been a dream. His eyes shot from one side of the cell to the other, listening for the other prisoners, but he heard nothing. What day was it now? Tuesday? Or maybe it was Sunday? Sunday? That was a bad day. He flipped himself onto his back and leaned forward. Upon closer examination, mostly by him getting off his butt and sauntering over to the plastic covering on his cell, could he determine that the other prisoners . . . or were the just inmates? . . . were still in their cells, just chattering very hushed like amongst themselves. 

Sauntering back over to his corner of the cell, he plopped back down and leaned his hot cheek against the cool padding. He was burning up. Did the air conditioner break? No, they were in the mountain anyways, so it should have been cold. But he felt so very hot and weak now. Beads of sweat were collecting at the top of his brow and dripping down the side of his face. It had to be the straightjacket. Had to be. He'd never felt so hot in his life, not even . . . even when? His thoughts were splitting again, like when he was undergoing the mako treatments. Were they even still doing that? He couldn't even keep track of that! His hysterical laughter broke the silence in the North West Wing and Kadaj began rocking back in forth, cackling like a maniac.

_Shut up, you pathetic fool!_ The voice hissed at him, for the first time in what seemed like forever. It hushed him instantly. Tilting his head to the side, he listened for the other mental patients. They were dead quiet. Kadaj snickered to himself, mumbling to himself and cackling like a crack-head wanting a fix. Oh, he wanted a fix alright. He wanted to see those mountains from his dreams and feel the fresh air on his face. Maybe, he could climb up the hole that let light into the courtyard. But where would he go? The river. The river would be a good place to go. It was nice and cold and it would soothe his feverishly hot skin.

"Let's go . . . go go go . . . hehe . . . teeheheheheh . . . ehehe .. . . tehhehee hehehe hahah!" Kadaj cackled, rocking back and forth, staring from behind his silver bangs covering his cat like eyes. They darted back and forth anxiously. The moment the guards tried to let him out, he'd . . . he'd do something. And then he'd run away and out the wing. But the jacket. He'd rip through the jacket, that's what he would do. So many things that he couldn't do that he wanted to just for freedom.

_If you want to be free, you have to listen to me, Kadaj. _The voice whispered, sweet and soft like silk curling around his aching head. _If I tell you to do something, do it. And do it quickly. _The voice commanded, trying to coax Kadaj out of his hysterics. But the man didn't listen. He didn't want to hear any more from his supposed 'alter ego'. It wasn't helping him get anywhere, and it hadn't tried to before. It just whispered things to him, things about . . . he couldn't remember now. But it whispered and it waited and it probably even lied, just like everyone else. He hated lies. He especially hated it when people looked directly into his eyes, faltered, and then tried to lie. Lies lies lies.

"Listen . . . no . . . to no one . . . they lie . . . everyone lies . . . you lie. You lie, you lie, you lie!" he screeched shrilly, jerking forward and slamming his head against the padding. "Out of my head . . . out out out! Get out of my head!" he cried, beating his head softly against the padding. "Mother . . . Jenova . . . I want mother, mother. Mother . . . the mako. Mako, mako, mako . . ." Kadaj mumbled incoherently.

The voice grew stern, _I can take you to mother. And all three of us . . . we'll be the Calamity from the Skies. We'll destroy Shinra and make them pay for making us . . . for making you . . . suffer. We'll use this world as our fiery vessel through the stars. We'll find a new planet, a pure planet. Kadaj? _The man was crying, wet, bitter tears as he nodded and wiped his nose on the tight, restraining jacket that kept his hands behind his back. His silver hair clung to his pale cheeks and he muttered, "Calamity from the Skies. Destroy them all . . . everyone . . . fiery vessel . . . yes. Yes . . ."

Kadaj took a deep breath, steadying himself, "What to do . . . how? No way . . . no escape."

_Just listen to me. Trust me. When I tell you to do something, just do it, Kadaj. I know a way, so listen. Listen to me. _The voice whispered, lulling him into a rather hypnotic state. Kadaj's head sunk as the voice's words coiled around his mind. They soothed him, and made him listen to what it was saying. _I can make you free, Kadaj, if you make me one promise. I only ask one thing in return for what I am going to give you. Just one._

Tilting his head to the side, his eyes nearly rolling into the back of his head, he whispered, "Tell me . . . one thing . . . what thing? What more do you need? Mako? Mako, mako mako . . ."

He cried out in shock, and stumbled back from the dark clothed figure standing in front of him. His blue green eyes shot around, but there was no where to go. It was a dark room, lit only by a single candle sitting on an old, wooden desk. The other cornered him and, putting his gloved hands on either side of Kadaj, he leaned forward and whispered, "That you will free me, Kadaj." Sephiroth stared him directly in the eyes, his deep, emerald orbs flickered with intense emotions. Their faces were so close that Kadaj could swear that he felt heat emanating off of the other man's body. But it couldn't be. This had to be a dream or something. There was no way that Sephiroth could simply . . . appear . . . in front of him . . . wherever he was. Kadaj pushed himself against the wall, fear coursing through him. He wanted to run away, but there wasn't anywhere to go. He was pinned.

"H-how?" he stuttered, reaching out to touch Sephiroth's face, to reassure himself that what was happening was not another hallucination. The SOLDIER endured the brief touch, but not without reluctance. He rather despised being touched, especially by one so unworthy of himself. Sure, Kadaj had Jenova cells and had gone to very extensive measures to try and resurrect Sephiroth, but that really didn't matter. Kadaj _was_ clinically insane, though it wasn't his own fault. Sephiroth sneered, "There is only one Sephiroth and will always only be one. Me. Shinra wastes their time trying to make pathetic clones, because they lack the thing they need most: my soul, which is, by the way, currently using you as its host."

Kadaj blinked, understanding, before inquiring, "So it was you moving around the ward last night, not me. That's why I couldn't go to mother . . . "

"You'd be of no use to her as a spirit, and nor am I!" He scowled. "That's why I need to free you so that I can have a proper body and won't have to fight for someone else's pathetically inadequate sack of flesh." A disturbingly malicious smile overcame his visage, "And then we can destroy the cesspool this world has become."


	3. Time to Escape

Woot! After much sweat and labor, I have given to you another chapter! I hope that you guys like it and don't forget to give lots of constructive comments! 3

* * *

Chapter Three

The darkness closed in around Kadaj, who laid shivering and twitching on the floor. His eyes rolled into the back of his head several times as he nearly passed out. Ever since he had stopped talking, the doctors started to administer more and more mako, each treatment having even worse effects on him then the ones before. His arms were dotted with needle puncture marks, and each little tiny circle was black and blue. The mako that coursed through his blood weakened him to the point that he couldn't even stand without support. Perhaps that was why the doctors hadn't put him back into the straight jacket. He was too weakened to even thinking about fighting. Too weak to do anything. Too weak to even think about escaping. The pain that spider-webbed through his veins occupied his thoughts entirely. Nothing else could enter his mind. All he could do was lie on the floor, shuddering and sputtering, hoping that there would be some relief from the pain. But the doctors had gone and he was alone…

Sephiroth had been quiet too. Too quiet. Sometimes Kadaj wondered if there had ever been such a thing, or if that too had been a twisted part of his imagination. His madness. His eyes lolled up and down, and he felt himself drifting off into darkness. Oh, that sweet darkness! It held him, cradled him, and kept him safe from all the pain. At least in that desolate oblivion there was no such thing as pain. He could afford to rest for a while without having to worry about the white doctors, the white room, the white laboratory, the white straight jacket. All the white. It was tainted by darkness. By shadow. Death. How he wished he would die. If perhaps his spirit could flee his body and leave it for dead. His eyes lolled again. Kadaj slammed his head against the padding.

"Let me out!" he screamed. "Let me out!" Nothing answered him. Not even the darkness wavering so uncertainly at the edge of his mind. It didn't come for him.

"Sephiroth . . ." he sputtered, saliva creeping over the edge of his lower lip. "Don't leave me. Please . . . come back. Come back!" He closed his eyes and slammed his head into the padding over and over until hot tears crept down the side of his face, and he tasted their bitter, salty taste. "Can't leave me . . . not me. Nibelheim. Nibel . . . he . . . hrm . . heim!"

Sniffling, Kadaj wiped his face against the floor padding and forced himself to roll over. It pained him to even move a little like that, but he did. He couldn't imagine trying to fall asleep in any other position then a fetal one. He let himself dream. He wanted to see those dreams. Those bittersweet memories

* * *

Jenova's DNA. That was the key. The key to unleashing Sephiroth, the most powerful SOLDIER ever to exist. He held that key in his hands, the last DNA that was extracted from Jenova. The very last. It was green, hardly dense. Not very blood like at all. But Jenova wasn't human. What was she? He'd find out. He'd find out so soon. 

He felt himself changing. Changing. His body ached, he screamed. His veins were on fire, oh god. What had he done? Was it poison he had stolen from Rufus Shinra? What was it that was coursing through his body? His heart stopped, and everything became black.

Breathless. His chest ached, his body was in pain. His gloved hand clawed at the cement and he looked up. An angel. Beautiful blonde hair, flawless blue eyes. And then there was the light pulling him into the clouds. Pulling him to his brothers. They looked so happy, for the first time in their lives since they had been entered into the SOLDIER program. He was finally free from that wretched world. Finally free…

* * *

Kadaj jolted awake. He craned his neck to the side. Everything was quiet. Too quiet. Even the guards who were sitting at the end of the hallway in their little cubicles watching tv were silent. It was deafening. The other inmates were sleeping soundly. The lights were off. The darkness was creeping in. Thick tendrils of shadow slithered through the hallway. The light bulbs, one by one, shattered oh so quietly. Shards of glass fell harmlessly on his face. His hot, feverish face. His eyes were bloodshot and they darted around as he pulled himself onto his hands and knees. A heated fire spread through his arms and face. Kadaj felt so sick that it was a wonder he hadn't puked all over his cell yet. The padding was cold. So very cold. 

And then he stood on his knees, his eyes wide, fearful. He heard that ever so dreadful beeping sound when the doctors entered the lock code into the number pad and put him on a gurney. But there was nothing at the door. Even when he heard the soft acceptance beep and the locks churned and his door opened . . . he saw nothing. Nothing but the darkness and the shadow. Thick tendrils of shadow crept into his cell, slithering along the floor and walls. Curling. Withering.

Kadaj stood, watching wearily to see if it was a trap. Or if it was just a figment of his imagination. Nothing moved, and he heard nothing. All this nothing was driving him mad. Paranoid. He was so paranoid. But the young man took a step forward nonetheless and peeked out into the hallway. It was covered with shattered glass, and he heard the scurrying of guards at the far end of the hall.

For a second, he was cold all over, and he nearly fell backwards from the force that pushed against him. It was so powerful, whatever it was. Even if it was just a hallucination, it felt powerful. Then his limbs lightened, and the heat in his blood cooled. All that had been poisoning him fled.

_GO! What are you waiting for? An invitation or something?_ The voice hissed, and Kadaj recognized Sephiroth. However, he stood dead in his place, just staring down the hall. Could he really take such a risk? Could he even walk down the hall? He knew what he had to do. He could see the unscrewed drain lid in the center of the hall. The darkness cloaked his form, and no one would see him. No one would notice that he had left his cell. No one would know how he ever managed to crawl, half sedated, to his feet and manage somehow to open his cell and leave the hallway guarded by at least three armed guards. A distorted grin fluttered across his pale, chapped lips. His eyes darkened.

The glass crunched noiselessly beneath his tender feet. His toes clutched the ice cold floor as he padded down the hallway, heedless of the bloodshot eyes that darted from him to the guard's scrambling around at the end of the hall. Kadaj was oblivious to their panicked cries and their calls to the main office for back up lighting. A light at the very end of the hall flickered on, it's blood red rays soaking up the water on the cement. It flickered and died. But it flickered on again, and then off. Kadaj felt a strange stirring in his breast as the light suddenly flickered on and then a second one followed. His blue green eyes filled with crimson as the emergency lights slowly came on, one by one.

_Move!_ The voice hissed venomously, but Kadaj remained still, entranced by the red lights. He could see the guards scurrying around in their cubicles as they tried desperately to unlock the doors to the hallway. The televisions were all static, and they flickered on and off angrily. _Is this the power you have, Sephiroth? Is this why they want you so much? _Kadaj teetered on the tips of his toes, just in front of the water drain. The lights were coming closer, the guards were pulling out their rifles, firing at the doors. Red and orange reflected in Kadaj's deep, swirling depths. And he grinned. Grinned so subtly that it was cattish. Deep, sadistic. _We'll show them, Sephiroth. We'll show them all._

He pulled the grill off the large pipe and stepped onto the ladder. The grill slid noiselessly back over the pipe as Kadaj stepped onto each moist, moss covered bar. His toes clutched at the metal as he eased himself down the pipe. Screams and cries of horror rose in a beautiful crescendo as the silver haired boy dropped into the bottom of the pipe. The roaring sound of fire consuming everything in its path echoed down the water drain and Kadaj simply smiled. Looking up, his eyes piercing the thick darkness, he saw the fire explode through the hall and heard the cries of pain and agony from the men locked in his wing. He threw his head back and laughed. And he laughed. And laughed. And laughed until his chest burned.

Letting go of the slick ladder, Kadaj turned away from the screams and the cries and the roar of the fire. Those sounds faded into nothingness as the dark oblivion of the sewers slowly enveloped him. His eyes pierced the shadows that hung in the sewers like thick silk curtains. Nothing bothered him. Not even the cold of the water that came up to his waist. Everything was nothing to him. And it consumed him. The cold, dark water that curled past his body, moving languidly in the direction that he wanted to go, the humid, dank air that suffocated his breaths . . . all of it was meaningless.

Kadaj stumbled through the sewers, heedless of what laid before him...

* * *

Collapsing, the silver haired man leaned his head back against the pipe wall. He had been walking for what seemed like ages, and aside from his feet and legs hurting, the cold was starting to gnaw at his bones. After all, he was practically naked except for the scanty little gown he wore. Most of the buttons had been torn off while he had trudged through the deep sewer water. He was so close to getting to the sewer opening where all the waste was dumped into a river. In fact, Kadaj was so close to freedom that he swore he could smell the fresh air and hear the roar of the water crashing down the mountain side. 

Running his fingers through his hair, he gasped for air. He was breathless. Tired. Wasted. Whenever he held his hands to his face, they trembled. His dark veins were sickeningly evident beneath his ivory colored skin. They seemed more green then red, but Kadaj didn't doubt it. So much mako had been injected into his body, most of what he was composed of probably wasn't even his own cells. Just mako.

He sputtered, "How much further? I'm so . . . so cold. Like death. Dying all over again." Lifting his head, he stared listlessly down the pipe.

_Keep moving. Shinra will be crawling all through these sewer lines in a few hours._

"But I'm tired. Cold. Tired. I'm tired and I'm cold. I just want to lie down and sleep. Just a little bit. No more dreams. No more Shinra. Just sleep. Sephiroth . . ." Kadaj's eyes lolled into the back of his head as his body hit the cold cement. His fingers twitched. They tapped the cold cement with their long, glassy nails. Tap tap tap. Titter tat. His entire body was spasming violently. A neon green substance trickled out of his nose and onto the side of his face. Those eyes of his flared green, a deep, but brilliant green. And then he rolled into the sewer water, body rocking back and forth, twisting in on itself.

The cold of the water must have jolted him out of his epileptic state, because he splashed around, lurching forward the moment his face fell beneath the dark, hungry surface. Clutching a nearby railing, Kadaj retched into the water. There was nothing in his stomach, but he continued to vomit several times before wobbling unsteadily. His pale hand clutched desperately at the railing.

_I said move, Kadaj._ Sephiroth said sternly. _The sooner we get out of the sewers, the better._ Kadaj shook his head, wiping away specks of vomit that clung to his chapped lips, "No. What then? Forest. Forest forever. Hundreds of thousands of forests. Let's sleep. Forever." There was an uncertain silenced that passed between the two before Sephiroth barked, _We'll keep going if I say we go! I'll abandon your worthless, sorry ass if I have to. I don't need you to survive. _Kadaj snickered, spit out the foul taste in his mouth and trudged forward. Scratching the side of his neck, he mumbled, "If you didn't need me, you'd have left. Or taken my brothers. Should have left me alone. Go back to Jenova. Go free."

For the rest of the trek, Sephiroth was completely silent. He didn't even muster up an annoyed bark when Kadaj stopped and sat against the cold pipe wall, feet dangling over the edge of the sidewalk that lined both sides of the sewer pipe. The tunnels were large enough that six or seven men could walk abreast down the center of the pipe without a problem. While that wasn't too bad considering that there were sidewalks, it would become a problem if Shinra found out what happened before Kadaj could slip out of the sewers and lose them in the forest. By that time, it would be too late to bring out the hounds. His scent would be lost on the wind, or more likely, absorbed by the earth. He was filled to the brim with mako, so little of what he gave off would be his actual scent. Not that there would be anything to give the dogs to track him with.

Fresh air wafted down the pipe and Kadaj's head snapped up. He shakily lifted himself to his feet and hurried down the sidewalk. He could feel the cold mist of fresh water being sprayed into the air and hear the roar of water crashing against rocks. Sephiroth must have sensed it as well, because Kadaj's entire body became light and his pains seeped away into the back of his mind. As he hurried along, he could hear the sounds of crickets and fireflies. The sounds of the night fluttered through the air, carried by the moist current that curled through the sewer pipe.

And then he saw it. The vast forest that laid before him. Through the short line of tunnel, he could see the trunks of the trees and the heads of leaves that extending towards the sky. The water moved swiftly through the piping, crashing into the river below to be carried down through the mountains. Kadaj clutched to the sidewalk railing and stuck his head out of the pipe. The stars! There were so many little bright lights in the sky that it nearly blinded him. He couldn't remember the last time he saw so much light. No . . . he could. When the angel came and lifted him into the light. And his body almost faded away into dust. Kadaj reached out with his pale, trembling hand towards the stars and grasped at them.

"The Calamity . . . from the sky . . . fiery vessel. Mother," His eyes filled with tears and his hand fell to his side.

Something stirred. And Sephiroth spoke again, _Into the forest, Kadaj. And then we can sleep . . . sleep . . . yes._

Kadaj stood still, motionless on the edge of the sidewalk, his tear filled eyes staring in wonder at the sky. Strands of silver hair fell over his blue green eyes, scattered by the soft wind that came down the side of the mountain. Mist from the churning water clung to each little strand and beaded on his hot face. The air was so fresh and clean. Even with the sewer spewing all sorts of nasty waste into the water, everything was so wonderful to him. It had been almost a year since he had last taken a fresh breath . . . since he had last seen the stars and the forest and all things that were.

He took a shaky step down the small maintenance ladder that led to the edge of the river. He took those steps as though he were stepping for the first time in his life. Then again, it was a new life to him. A life without white walls, doctors, and mako. It was something that he couldn't quite remember but lingered in him still. His heart pounded furiously in his breast and a wave of anxiety rippled through his stomach. Another series of vomiting. Green vomit spewed from his lips and onto the ground below. Green like the mako. Kadaj clung to the ladder and took each step precariously, knowing that a missed footing could easily throw him into the icy clutches of the river.

It was a whole new world…


End file.
